NRL Power Rankings: Round 3

Another new segment here at OTLS NRL, with the power rankings revealed each and every week on Tuesdays. Rather than ranking teams as the ladder stands, the OTLS NRL Power Ranking will take into account current form, potential, injuries and who we think would be the hardest to beat the next week.

1st Storm (Last Week: 2nd)

No matter what happens to the Storm you can never write them off, despite their forward pack being ravaged with injury they still continue to win games and carry on with business as usual. Ryley Jacks looks set to spend more time in the number six jersey with Cameron Munster expected to miss the 4-6 weeks with a broken jaw.

The Storm are our new number one.

2nd Roosters (Last Week: 4th)

Were lucky to come away with the win against the Panthers (albeit controversially) and keep their perfect start intact. Points were much harder to come by for the Sydney side when put up against a much more worthy opposition though they didn’t help themselves, making a mountain of errors. We probably won’t get to see what this Roosters team is really made of until their round six game against Brisbane.

3rd Cowboys (Last Week: 1st)

The Cowboys have been hammered by injuries (and a Jason Taumalolo suspension) in the last two games and along with having to start the season with back-to-back golden point games, were understandably caught lacking against a determined Manly outfit. Further injuries to O’Neill and Feldt set to derail the Cowboys backline already missing Coote and Winterstein. The Cowboys might get a free get out of jail card when they come up against fellow injury ravaged QLD club, the Titans on Saturday.

4th Broncos (Last Week: 5th)

Did well against the Storm down at AAMI Park and were unlucky not to come away with a win, the Broncos dogged goal line defence kept them in front all night until when it mattered most. They face the Raiders on Friday night at Suncorp in a must win game for both clubs, top eight aspirations and most definitely any chance of making top four are on the line.

5th Raiders (Last Week: 9th)

The Raiders tore apart the Tigers in a happy return for captain Jarrod Croker. The Raiders weak spot in 2017 has been their bench however David Taylor’s arrival helped rotations and with it, the Canberra forwards lifted to their best performance so far this season. As mentioned above, the Raiders head up to Brisbane to take on the Broncos in a must win game or face going 1-3.

The Raiders and their clap are back.

6th Parramatta (Last Week: 3rd)

The Eels fell apart without star halfback Corey Norman however it could be said his absence had nothing to do with the loss. Parramatta turned over the ball 13 times and conceded 8 penalties that basically handed the Titans the win. The Eels face a slight conundrum this week with all of their hookers under injury clouds and the timing isn’t ideal as they come up against the Sharks who are also looking to bounce back after a disappointing loss.

7th Sharks (Last Week: 6th)

Despite trailing at the halftime break, the Sharks started the second half with all the momentum and threatened a daring comeback however unforced errors and conceding unnecessary penalties ripped away any chance Cronulla had of snatching a win. The Sharks looked flat in attack and they’ll need to find their mojo soon if they are going to beat a talented Eels side on Saturday night.

8th Penrith (Last Week: 8th)

The Panthers were arguably the most impressive side to lose on the weekend, narrowly going down to the Roosters on a controversial try the NRL has since admitted was wrong. Despite the loss, the Panthers seem to have put their round one debacle behind them and are becoming the team everyone thought we’d see in 2017.

The Panthers and their fans felt dejected after their loss to the Roosters.

9th Dragons (Last Week: 12th)

Despite many tipping St George-Illawarra to finish in the bottom two, we are only three rounds in and the Dragons have come away with two surprise upsets already. Taking nothing away from the Dragons, their win on the weekend however seemed like the Sharks beat themselves more than anything the Dragons did. An interesting match up with the Warriors on another late Sunday afternoon awaits.

10th Bulldogs (Last Week: 13th)

The Bulldogs chances weren’t great with a full strength side, so they were practically written off once Hopoate and first choice goal kicker Holland were ruled out with injury, however an impressive display of defence gave the Bulldogs their first win of 2017. Canterbury can get their season headed back in the right direction with another win over Manly on Saturday afternoon.

11th Souths (Last Week: 10th)

It wasn’t the prettiest of wins but the Souths and some Adam Reynolds brilliance did just enough to get the two points against a determined Knights outfit. George Burgess’ brain explosion will see him sit out for two weeks while Hymel Hunt and Braidon Burns’ suspensions will force the Rabbitohs to dig deeper into their already shallow backs stocks.

12th Manly (Last Week: 14th)

The Sea Eagles brought back their impressive defence from their round one loss against the Eels and frustrated the Cowboys into making errors. Capitalising on those turnovers Manly shocked the competition with a big win. It is to be said however the Cowboys were missing half of their starters but it could just be the win that gives Manly the confidence they need to kick start their season. An all important clash with the Bulldogs who also won their first game of the season last week awaits.

13th Warriors (Last Week: 7th)

The Warriors seemed lost without captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck at the back and despite having a mountain of possession on the Bulldogs goal line, they struggled to break through the Bulldogs line to score points and could only manage to force the single drop out. RTS should return this weekend and Foran is expected to make his club debut in the next two weeks while forward Ben Matulino is also only a couple of weeks away.

14th Titans (Last Week: 16th)

The Titans started slow but they made the most of the Eels mistakes, with Ash Taylor putting in one the finer performances of his career so far. Gold Coast should employ someone to hide all mirrors, ladders and black cats as their luck with injury could not get any worse.

The Titans dug deep for their first win in 2017.

15th Knights (Last Week: 15th)

Newcastle put in a brave performance in their loss to the Souths and if they weren’t hampered by injury could have pulled a rabbit out of the hat and won. Coach Nathan Brown again expressed his concern for having an 18th man ready to come on to replace players missing for concussion tests as his bench dropped to two which forced winger Nathan Ross to stay on despite a clearly hurt ankle. Trent Hodkinson will need to choose his words more carefully next time he addresses the referees as he forced to sit out the final 10 minutes of the match in a costly sin-binning.

16th Tigers (Last Week: 11th)

The Tigers were a basket-case on the weekend, they looked nothing like the team that piled on six tries against the Souths only two weeks ago and coach Jason Taylor was subsequently sacked. With Aaron Woods declaring last week he wouldn’t re-sign with the club until the future of the coaching staff was decided, it was inevitable the decision would come sooner than